sea / lake

The various Greek, Aramaic, Latin and Hebrew terms that are translated as “sea,” “ocean,” or “lake” in English are all translated in Chichewa with one term: nyanja. Malawi, where Chichewa is spoken, has a lot of lakes but does not share a border with the ocean. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Numbers 33:10

And they set out from Elim: Compare Exo 16.1. Good News Translation starts a new paragraph here. There is no particular reason to do this, except that verse 9 interrupts the list of camping places with some more information about Elim. Translations who follow this model may need to make explicit that the pronoun they refers to the Israelites.

And encamped by the Red Sea: For Red Sea, which is literally “Sea of Reeds” (New Revised Standard Version footnote, Bible en français courant, Parole de Vie, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, La Biblia: Traducción en Lenguaje Actual, Bijbel in Gewone Taal, Willibrordvertaling), see the comments on 14.25. Good News Translation says “Gulf of Suez,” which may be geographically accurate, but it sounds anachronistic and takes the reader away from the notion that the text still refers to the sea through which the Israelites passed miraculously.

Quoted with permission from de Regt, Lénart J. and Wendland, Ernst R. A Handbook on Numbers. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .